Bootstrap's Secret
by Sky4888
Summary: Will and Jack are competing on a dangerous journey to find an ancient treasure left behind for the heir. This perilous adventure leaves Elizabeth in the middle, while she still hasn't married her fiance or returned to Port Royal. Updates coming soon.
1. A Letter and Rum

A/N: This story was cowritten by Crazywriter26. We'll update hopefully every Friday. Please R&R!

Disclaimer: We do not own anything!

**Chapter 1: A Letter and Rum**

It was a stormy night aboard a stolen English trading ship. Jack Sparrow captained it and was in a sour mood; he raised his near, empty bottle of rum to his lips and took a swig. His beloved Black Pearl was gone, the events of how he lost the beloved ship kept playing through his mind; how the Kraken had sunken it and left him to die. As Jack thought of his mistakes the rest of the crew worked hard to keep ship traveling in the right direction.

Jack managed to join up again with his acquaintances from Port Royal after he escaped Davy Jones for good. Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann were aboard the same ship as Jack and were heading for the nearest civilized island.

After a dinner prepared by the crew, Will walked slowly into his cabin. To his surprise he saw a strange person dressed in raggedy clothing.

"Argh… a message for William Turner," he said.

The stranger handed Will a letter with nothing written on the red envelope. When Will looked up, the stranger was gone. The odd thing was… no doors or windows had been opened and no trace was left of the late night messenger.

Will was about to open up the letter when someone knocked on the door. "Will?" called Elizabeth

"Be right there".

Will decided to leave the envelope for later and set it on the dark wooden desk in the corner of the room. Then he walked out to see what Elizabeth wanted.

Meanwhile, Jack was going on an extreme search for more rum. He set out half the crew to find him some. Without permission he wandered into Will's room and began searching through the cabinets. Disappointed, he began to leave when the red envelope caught his attention.

"What be this?" Jack asked himself.

Being as nosey as he is, Jack opened the letter. His eyes widened as he read what it was about. He snatched the letter and walked out of the room. There was no way he would allow Will to read what was in this message, especially now that he could use it to his advantage.


	2. The Swann's Rage and Pain

A/N: This chapter was written by Crazywriter26 and edited by Sky4888. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: We own nothing!

**Chapter 2: The Swann's Rage…and Pain**

Jack sat in silence, just staring at the letter that now resided near his bed. He had to make sure that Will didn't find out what was in the letter but…how? He couldn't just keep it hidden. Will would look for it and when he found it he would begin to question who took it. No, Jack had to figure out how to get them off the ship and back to Port Royal.

Just as an idea came to him a voice interrupted his thoughts, "Land Ho!" Jack stood abruptly and headed out to the deck. He spotted Elizabeth almost immediately and walked over to her, tapping her shoulder.

"Why hello love." he said when she turned around, right before he leaned down and forcefully kissed her on the mouth, his hands all over her. She shoved him off her, shock and fear in her brown eyes, which quickly turned to angry.

"How dare you! Err… Bloody pirate!"

She slapped him, hard across the face; before quickly making her way back to her cabin, to Will.

Will looked up, startled by the door banging open. "Liz?" he questioned cautiously, seeing how angry and upset she was "What happened?"

Elizabeth shut the door and went to sit next to Will on the bed; he immediately wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. At first, she didn't say anything, just sat there; enjoying the safe feeling she always got from Will holding her.

"I want to go back to Port Royal, on another ship, away for HIM."

"What did he do?" Will asked, knowing that Elizabeth was referring to Jack.

"He kissed me, had his hands all over me." She responded shakily. Will's jaw clenched in anger, he wanted to hit Jack so hard that it would cause him to walk straight. _'I can't believe he did that' _Will thought, even though he wanted to hurt Jack, first he had to calm down Elizabeth.

Not many people knew about her less then perfect past that led her to fear men. They didn't know about the harassment that she had gone through in England, and after she left and was at sea, and in Port Royal.

Jack was confused, for the most part he had expected much of her reaction, the shock, anger, and of course her slapping him. But what he didn't get was the fear he saw in her eyes, that deep rooted fear that could only be triggered by memories of something terrible, unknown (to him) event or series of events in her past.

_'Shit, what have I done?' _he thought _'I've got to try and fix this, apologize, something.' 'But if I apologize, I'll have to explain why I did it, and admit to Will that I took his letter, read it, and didn't want him to find out what's in it.' _Jack weighed his options and was so deep in thought he didn't even realize that they had reached the port, until he felt the boat give a small jolt, halting it. He looked around and his eyes fell on an angry Will, and a much calmer Elizabeth walking out of there cabin and toward him. He smiled and stepped forward ready for whatever Will would dish out, he knew he deserved it. He had also made his decision…

'_I can't, hopefully she won't hate me forever.'_


	3. Fair Fighting Pirates

Chapter 3: Fair Fighting Pirates

A/N: This chapter was writtenby sky4888 and editedby Crazywriter26. Please R&R!

Disclaimer: We do not own anything to do with the Pirates of the Caribbean!

Jack was standing on the deck when Will came fast at him. Will threw a punch at Jack but Jack quickly stepped to the side and drew his sword.

"So I see you want to loose another sword fight?" Jack said as Will pulled out his sword too.

"I never lost to you. You just cheated in a fair fight," Will replied.

"Say what you want, but I won last time!"

Their swords clashed and the fight had started. Jack swung low and caused Will to jump. Will accidentally tripped over a fishing net, and rolled away from the fight. A little dizzy, Will got up and was ready to strike back at Jack. However, Jack was nowhere to be seen. The deck was quiet as the crewmembers watched the action, but now they looked around confused at the situation.

"Where did Jack go?" Elizabeth asked. "He was there a second ago… then I saw him jump off the side of the deck!"

"I'm here," said Jack. As he was saying this he jumped from behind Will and landed next to him. Jack knocked Will off of his feet and threw Will's sword aside.

"So do you admit defeat?" Jack asked Will as he held the sword to his neck, "…again?"

"You got me this time." Will said.

Jack lowered his sword and helped Will up. The crew watched carefully what was going on.

"Elizabeth and I are leaving. We'll get our own ship and head back to Port Royal. I think it's best to stay away from you for awhile," Will said boldly to Jack.

A smile played across Jack's face as he heard the news. His plan was working after all. In a few hours he will be off on his adventure to find what he's looking for. "Okay, I'll be saying my goodbyes then lad." Jack held out his hand and shook it with Will's. However, Will was a little reluctant considering what had just happened a few minutes ago with Elizabeth. Will gave in and shook Jack's hand before swinging his free hand around to punch Jack squarely in the jaw; he then turned and walked of the ship with Elizabeth, leaving a shocked Jack behind.

Will and Elizabeth gathered their things and left after their conversation with Jack. Will thought it was best to spend time away from him because Jack seemed a little odd today. Pirate or not, Will knew Jack was up to something. It just wasn't like him to go out and kiss Elizabeth so suddenly.

The two of them paid a fair to travel with some English sailors to Port Royal. It just so happened that there was an extra two cabins on the ship and they were lucky enough to have first dibs.

Elizabeth and Will boarded and set sail to travel to Port Royal. The ship was small and comfortable. It was estimated to only take a day or two to arrive in the ports.

"The more I think about it, I get the feeling that I'm forgetting something," Will said to Elizabeth.

"Like what? It's not as if we had much with us on our last adventure." Elizabeth replied.

"I don't know. It's just one of those deep feelings you get every so often."

Meanwhile, Captain Jack Sparrow set sail for Tortuga to pick up some crew members. The ship he stole needed some decent sailors, and possibly a few of Jack's friends. The few sailors he had asked too many questions and were not very trustworthy.

"Cap'n where are we headed?" One of the crew asked.

"You'll know when we get there," Jack replied. Out of curiosity, he checked his old compass to see where it pointed. To his surprise, it worked again and pointed to the exact direction he needed to go.

"Land ho!"

Jack steered the ship into the port at Tortuga. They docked and most of the crew went to take a break from the sea. Jack however was still on his mission and searched for his perfect crew.


	4. Old Friends and Old Memories

Disclaimer: We own nothing!

A/N: We're really sorry it took so long. There has been a lot going on lately. Anyway... this chapter was written by Crazywriter26 and edited by Sky4888. Please Read & Review. Enjoy!

**Chapter 4: Old Friends and Old Memories**

Jack walked into one of the many taverns in Tortuga in hopes of finding a crew. His eyes made a quick sweep of the area as he walked to the bar to get himself some much needed rum, his eyes stopped at a very familiar figure standing at the back of the bar. They looked up and caught his eye, and both of there faces breaking into grins. Jack made his way over exclaiming loudly "Arabella!"

"Jack Sparrow."

"Captain love, Captain Jack Sparrow."

"Really? You managed to scrap by Jones with your life and your title? In the market for a ship, I assume, since the Pearl is sitting at the bottom of the ocean."

"Aye, but I have my eyes on a ship." Jack said while handing her the letter.

Arabella eyes widened in shock as she read the letter "You stole this!"

"Aye, I need a ship, a good ship, that is a good ship, and I'm not giving it up to someone who will not use it."

Elizabeth sat up in bed, breathing heavily and crying "Will" she whispered shakily.

"Hmmm?" he managed still half-asleep.

"Will, wake up"

"Liz? What's wrong?" he whisper, now fully awake. He sat up next to her and pulled her into his arms, waiting for her to tell him what her dream was about. _'Nightmares more like it' _he thought. After Elizabeth had calmed her breathing she snuggled closer to Will and began to tell him what had frightened her.

_FLASHBACK_

_Young Elizabeth Swann stood, staring out across the ocean and at the moon and stars reflected in the water. She couldn't have been more then ten at the time, making the crossing from England to a British port in the Caribbean with her father. Elizabeth was enjoying the beautiful sight in front of her that she didn't here someone walking up behind her, until they wrapped their arms around her waist and began kissing her neck. She froze in fear, but then coming to her sense she started to thrash but when she opened her mouth to scream it was quickly covered by a hand. She stopped thrashing when she heard his voice in her ear "Scream and I will throw you over board Ms. Swann, now come with me." She nodded, fearful of what he would do to her if she didn't listen to him. He then stole her from the ship using a little row boat, and she was not seen for the next ten days._

_END FLASHBACK_

She would never forget that night for the rest of her life, it was the night that had truly started her torment.


	5. Lost and Remembered

Disclaimer: We own nothing!

A/N: This chapter was written by Sky4888 and edited by Crazywriter26. Enjoy!

**Chapter 5: Lost and Remembered**

Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann arrived at Port Royal after a very short ride on the ship. It was a sunny day with blue skies and a slight breeze. They couldn't have asked for more perfect weather. The two of them left the ship and headed towards the governor's mansion to greet Mr. Swann. As they were walking, Will stopped abruptly and Elizabeth almost walked right into him.

"Elizabeth… I think I know what I'm forgetting." Will explained the mysterious visitor he had only a few days ago. He also told her about the letter he received in a bright red envelope. "There is no way I would be able to forget something like that." He said.

"Well even if you did, someone would have seen it." They both thought hard and came to one conclusion. "JACK!" They said simultaneously.

"Why would he take something like that?" Will asked.

"He's a pirate. I'm sure he couldn't resist and just opened it up. Or maybe he knew who it was from." Elizabeth guessed.

"Yes… or he knew what it was about. It seems that Jack knows more about me than I do." He said.

FLASHBACK

_A young Will Turner stood on the deck of the _English Sail_, a ship that sailed from England to British ports in the West Indies. His caretaker in England had sent him to the Caribbean in hopes of a new, more successful life. His father had left him and got a job in the English Trading Company and hasn't been seen in more than a year. William Turner Sr. left to get the money to support his family; little did he know, his wife died shortly after he got this new job. Now, Will was alone and needed a new life. _

_Will Turner was supposed to sail to Port James. There, he would be trained to become a soldier in the British- Caribbean army at a very young age. However, his ship faced many conflicts on the way. Pirates invaded the _English Sail _and blew the ship to pieces. Not much remained of the boat and Will floated unconscious on a piece of debris. _

_Less than an hour later, he was found by the Governor's daughter. Now, his future was in the hands of her and her father. Fortunately, Will was given a chance to become a blacksmith and worked for the next eight years peacefully. _

_As a blacksmith, a note was forwarded to him from England only about a year later. _

Dear Mr. Turner:

After searching for you for a long time, I received word that you now live in Port Royal. I wrote this letter to express my sympathy and tell you of the horrible news. Your father passed away on his job and left everything in the will to you. His belongings and money will be sent to you soon. I am sorry for your loss. Know that if you wish to return to England, you will always have a place in my house to stay.

Sincerely,

Mary, _Your caretaker_

_Will had never heard anything about his father since then. As a matter of fact, Will didn't even know that he would soon follow in his fathers footsteps as a pirate. _

END FLASHBACK

"Well what do you want to do about the letter you got with the red envelope?" Elizabeth asked Will.

"The only thing we can do… go after Jack. It must be something important if he wants it that bad. We need to find out what it says."

"You know, things are starting to make a lot more sense. I think Jack wanted us off that ship." Liz said.

"You're right. I think he kissed you and knew we would overreact. He was trying to be slick to get us to leave." Will exclaimed.

"Well… it worked." Elizabeth replied.

A/N: The letter in the flashback is not the same letter that Will got from the mysterious stranger! I hope you liked chapter five. Please R&R!


	6. The Barnacle

Disclaimer: Once again we own nothing! (Jack's flashback is based on the new Jack Sparrow series, it is not my creation.)

A/N: This chapter was written by Crazywriter26 and edited by Sky4888. Please read & review! We hope you like it!

**Chapter 6: The Barnacle**

_He had stolen Will's letter, which happened to be from Bootstrap Bill Turner, his father. It contained information about a secret ship being handed down to Will. This ship was said to possess secret powers, and is even considered to be a more valuable ship than the _Flying Dutchman_. He thought it would make a great replacement for the Pearl. Jack decided to get rid of Will and Elizabeth so that he could take the ship for himself and avoid their questions and curiosities. _

After discussing a plan on how to go about finding Bootstrap's ship, Arabella and Jack had to first set out to find a trusting crew. Jack was able to find at least some of his old crew, like Gibbs, Mr. Cotton, and Ana Maria. He also surprisingly allowed Ragetti and Pintel into his crew. He figured if they caused him any trouble he'd have some new shooting targets, since he had managed to get rid of the monkey.  
Jack and Arabella had decided to continue using the English trading ship until they were able to find and commandeer a better, more suited ship for the journey ahead. Though Jack had a feeling that this ship would do them just fine, considering they both had traveled in a less suited ship then this for their first sea adventure.

_FLASHBACK_

_Jack Sparrow sat in his cabin writing in the Captains log he had started keeping. So lost in thought, he didn't even realize he had stopped writing, and was just letting his thoughts overtake him._

_Captain Jack Sparrow, he liked the sound of that. He was a captain; he had a ship, a first mate, and a crew. Sure the "Mighty" Barnacle wasn't the greatest ship but it would make due. His first mate, who he met on one faithful night in the Faithful Bride when he mistakenly stole Captain Torrents sack, which contained the sheath of the Sword of Cortes, a barmaid, Arabella, knew a lot more about pirate legends then he did. She was a pretty young lass, with no where to go, except to the tavern. As for his crew, it included Fitzy, a rich lad whom was trying to escape a marriage and a hell of a lot of bananas; and two lads they picked up on Stoney-Eyed Sam's island, Jean and Tumen. They worked with English merchants, so they know a bit more about sailing then the rest of us. And then there was him, Jack Sparrow, the captain, the stowaway…_

_END FLASHBACK_

Jack smiled at the memory before heading off of to his ship, with his first mate, crew, and a whole new stock of much needed rum.


	7. Fog on the Norrington

Disclaimer: For the seventh time… we own nothing!

A/N: This chapter was written by Sky4888 and edited by Crazywriter26. Finally a longer chapter like you have been asking for! Please read & review!

**Chapter 7: Fog on the Norrington**

Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann sat for a moment thinking about what to do next. This short adventure was turning out to be a lot more than they bargained for. Not to mention, many of their plans for a normal life were ruined. They still haven't got married and they let one of their "acquaintances" run off with a secret letter.

They quietly discussed the only thing left for them to do. They needed to commandeer a ship in order to catch Jack.

"So… once again we are going to become pirates ourselves and track down Jack Sparrow?" Elizabeth asked.

"Precisely. And while we are at it, we might as well steal some rum." Will said. Elizabeth chuckled slightly at him. They both walked down to the docks to eye their ship.

"How about that one?" Liz exclaimed.

"Do you realize that the ship you wish to commandeer is called the _Norrington_? Talk about awkward…."

The pair of them used a longboat to paddle out into the middle of the bay. The ship was completely deserted except for one sailor who watched over it. Quickly and quietly they climbed up a rope hanging over the deck. Will went first and checked to make sure no one was onboard. The one sailor there was thrown overboard by Elizabeth. "To catch a pirate, act like one." She said.

Will and Elizabeth readied the ship and set sail. "We'll start at Tortuga. That would be the first place Jack would go. He probably picked up a crew and is going after whatever was in my letter. We should be there by tomorrow morning." Will said.

"Okay. If he's not at Tortuga, we can check the local tavern and ask the bartender questions. Jack would have gone there first while on the island." Elizabeth replied. It was starting to get dark and they needed to have their plan down now.

On the _Norrington_ Will and Elizabeth took shifts steering the ship. While one of them steered, the other would sleep. Will was on his sleeping shift and was awoken by an eerie, cold wind. All the lights on the ship had been dimmed, and fog covered the deck. The fog was so thick, you could barely see your hand in front of your face. "ELIZABETH!" Will yelled. There was no answer but the wind.

Suddenly, Will caught a glimpse of a tall, dark shadow. It slowly approached him and he backed away. "_Will_!" The figure said. Finally, it was close enough to see. Bootstrap Bill took off his hood and stared at his son.

"How come you never replied to my letter?" Bootstrap asked with the winds chill in his voice.

"Wh-what? I never even opened it. Jack Sparrow stole it from me." Will said rather shakily.

"He stole it? I would expect none the less from him. He might be an old friend, but he's still a pirate." Bill said.

"What was in the letter anyway?"

"It was to tell you that I left you a ship. It is one of the fastest and most powerful ships in the entire Caribbean. It was going to be presented to you when I died… but I figured you could use it now. Besides, I don't have much use for it anymore. The letter said to reply by burning it. This is one of the secret ways pirates used to communicate. The smoke would turn green, and can be seen miles away. However, you never replied at all. So I waited a couple of days and decided I needed to see you myself." Bootstrap explained.

"Where is the ship that you are talking about?" Will asked.

Bootstrap Bill handed Will a piece of old parchment. There were markings and notations all over it. "Follow this map. You need to find, and sail this powerful ship before Jack does. If he finds it first… you'll never see him again."

After Bootstrap's last word, a strong wind picked up and blew salt water into Will's eyes. Will temporarily couldn't see and wiped his eyes frantically. When he looked up, his father was gone and the fog was clear.

Will found Elizabeth fast asleep, leaning over the side of the deck. She had obviously been asleep for a while so he woke her up. "Wha… where am I?" She said.

"You feel asleep while you were steering. Are you okay?" Will asked.

"Yes, yes I'm fine. I don't even remember falling asleep. I'm so sorry." Liz replied.

"It's okay… we are heading in a new direction anyway." Will held up the map and explained what had just happened to Elizabeth. She was surprised, but thankful they found out what the letter was about. "Somehow, I get the feeling that there is a lot more to this than what we've heard so far." Will said.


	8. Lost but not Forgotten Love

Disclaimer: We own nothing. (Remember Arabella is owned by Rob Kidd who wrote the Jack Sparrow series.)

A/N: Here's chapter 8... Hopefully 9 will be up soon. Just for the record, Please Read & Review!

**Chapter 8: Lost but all but Forgotten Love**

Jack stood at the front of the ship, arm extended, holding his compass in his palm, grinning insanely.

"Do we have heading?" questioned Gibbs

"Go that way." Jack said vaguely swinging his arm west, smirking at his crew.

"Please tell me ye know where we're going this time, captain."

"No need to worry mate, Jack's got it under control." Gibbs nodded, still a bit unconvinced, but continued on to tell the crew of their heading. The ship set off in the vague direction pointed out by her captain. Arabella slowly walked up to Jack, a little unnerved by the entire situation.

"It's good to be back out at sea." Arabella said wistfully as she leveled with him.

"What have you been doing all these years Bell?"

"Well, after I came home from our numerous adventures, I apologized to my father profusely and he allowed me my job as a barmaid, and I've been doing that ever since. Quite a boring life, ain't it?"

"Quite, but a boring life isn't so bad if you are happy about it lass."

"That's just it Jack, I wasn't, haven't been happy. That's the reason I so eagerly agreed to do this, even though I wasn't sure about being on your ship or being in your life again."

"Bell…" Jack trailed off, refusing to look at her. "I'm sorry, I really am."

Arabella smiled sadly and nodded "I know."

Just as Jack opened his mouth to say something, Gibbs interrupted drunkenly "Rum?" holding up a full, opened bottle out to the captain. Jack nodded before taking it and saying sarcastically "Trying to get me drunk to overthrow me again, I see." He took a swig and moved away into his cabin.

_FLASHBACK_

_Jack paced back and forth desperately awaiting the return of his Bell. 'She won't be mine for very long, not after what I did.' He thought sadly. His head shot up at the sound of her shoes on the wooden deck of the ship._

_"Bell…"_

_"Don't Jack, I don't need an explanation, I know that all you are going to say is that it was a drunken act, and that didn't mean anything. Well, it meant something to me Jack, to me it meant that you weren't serious when you said that you loved me!"_

_"I was serious when I said I loved you Bell."_

_"I can't do it Jack, I can't continue to travel with you, not like this, I'm sorry."_

_"I am too Bell." Those were the last words spoken between them for a good thirteen years; it was a conversation that neither of them would soon forget. It haunted both of them._

_END FLASHBACK_


	9. The Island

Disclaimer: We do not own anything to do with the Pirates of the Caribbean movies or the Jack Sparrow books by Rob Kidd. (However, the ship they are searching for is our own idea.)

A/N: This chapter was written by Sky4888 and edited by Crazywriter26. Enjoy!

**Chapter 9: The Island**

Will and Elizabeth changed the direction of their ship, the _Norrington_. The ship was slightly smaller than most that they have sailed together and proved to be an easy task. Afterwards, Will studied the map that was given to him by his father.

It was very old and browned at the edges. From their location, Will's ship seemed to be a lot farther than expected. The map would take them into uncharted waters to what looked like an island. However, there were many more lines and markings between the _Norrington_ and their destination. They were unclear and looked like ink stains from the cartographer.

"What do you suppose that is?" Elizabeth pointed to a spot on the map that looked like a circle with a line slashed through it.

"I have no idea." Will replied.

Will and Elizabeth sailed for two days with perfect weather and no obstacles in their path. On the third day, they had a more difficult time.

As they got closer to the island, the skies darkened and a mist rose all around them. It was much harder to navigate than fog because it always sprayed your face and made it almost impossible to see. Just as Will turned the ship, a huge rock appeared out of nowhere in the water.

"ELIZABETH! Grab hold of something, we might hit the rock!" Will tried to steer the ship around the rocks and suddenly more and more appeared.

"Will… how are we going to get out of this mess? The rocks have surrounded us and the sea is getting rough." Elizabeth yelled and tried desperately to grab onto a rope, but it just slipped through her fingers.

"Abandon ship! Get one of the rescue boats ready. We need to leave before we crash."

Elizabeth ran to the side of the ship and began to lower a row boat into the open water. This proved to be a hard task because the ship continuously rocked from side to side. As she did this, Will tried his hardest to steer the _Norrington_ out of the nearly impossible mess.

"Will… its readyyyy." Elizabeth left off her sentence carrying on the word because she had just fallen over the side of the ship. Will quickly jumped in after her. The _Norrington _was now empty and left to crash.

_Later_

Elizabeth woke up with the sun in her eyes and her clothes soaking. 'Where am I?' She thought. She got up slowly and looked around. It was a perfectly sunny, warm day and the ocean was calm. 'Where's Will?' Elizabeth walked along the shoreline for about ten minutes searching for Will.

'Where on earth am I!' For the third time Elizabeth asked where she was. She was confused and barely remembered what had just happened. Just then… something rustled in the trees behind her. She crept over behind a rock and ducked down to see what was coming. Will emerged from the inland and shouted, "ELIZABETH!"

Relieved, Elizabeth ran up to William. "I'm here." She cried slightly and hugged him. "How long have we been here?"

"About an hour. After our ship crashed… its like the weather cleared up. The mist went away, and the ocean got smooth. It is really weird." Will replied.

The pair of them decided to check out the island. It was oddly shaped with several old, abandoned ports. In the bay, it looked like a ship graveyard. Hundreds of ships had sunken; their masts just above the surface of the water. The waters were shark infested and parts of the old ships littered the shore.

"What a peculiar island. I wonder… do you think this is the place where your father's old ship is hidden?" Elizabeth asked Will.

"Seems like it. Let me look at the map." Will Turner pulled out the tattered old map. The markings were similar to the landscape of the island.

"We're close."


	10. Broken Shards of Glass

A/N: Hey guys! Crazywriter here, hope ya enjoy the next chapter.

Disclaimer: We own nothing that you may recognize from PotC or the books by Rob Kidd.

**Chapter 10: Broken Shards of Glass**

A knock resounded through the captain's quarters; "Jack?" came a questioning voice from the other side of the door.

"What is it Bell?" he all but whispered after their previous conversation, that had brought up memories he had suppressed for so long and had no desire to remember, he did not want to face her.

"Jack?" she called again, not having heard him.

"Come in." he called back this time, louder. Arabella walked in, sat down, and grabbed the bottle from his hand. She took a long swig, letting the liquid burn her throat.

She looked at Jack and nearly choked on her rum in laughter. "What? You act like you've never seen me drink before mate."

"I've never seen you drink like that." he pointed out that she had nearly emptied the already half-empty bottle.

Arabella shrugged and handed the bottle back to Jack. "Things change." An uncomfortable silence filled the room; both occupants sat staring at one another, neither wavering until "We should really talk this out." Arabella started carefully, "If we don't it's just going to hang over us, and I don't want that." Arabella whispered out the last part.

"What do you want me to say Bell? I've told you that I was sorry. So what do you want to hear? That I was a bloody fool for doing that to you, that I wish I hadn't, that I haven't wanted to be with anyone but you these past thirteen years, but I was because I had to find some way to get away from the pain, that I still bloody love you!" Jack's emotions mounted with every passing word, and by the time he was finished his tirade, you could clearly read his emotions through his eyes. This was something Jack never let anyone do, no one had ever seen past his barriers, except Arabella.

Arabella sat in shock, thoughts running through her head so fast she couldn't focus on one.

When she finally regained her composure she was able to force out "I…Jack…I can't…not again…I'm…sorry, I'm sorry, Jack" She then fled from the room and down to the crew corridors below deck.

Jack took one last swig from the rum bottle, draining it, before flinging it across the room and watching it break into a million, small, sparkling pieces. He looked at the broken pieces, glittering in the fire light, all across the floor, and thought how well they reflected his broken heart.


	11. The Encounter

Disclaimer: We own nothing!

**Chapter 11: The Encounter **

_They were on the English trader, The Enchantress, after a dangerous journey across the sea. Fog was just starting to roll in and Jack Sparrow sat up attentively forgetting his previous conversation with Arabella. The ship grew quiet as the crew suddenly realized what was happening._

"Stop the ship!" Jack commanded at once. The wind picked up fast and the waters below grew harsh.

"Cap'n, what does this mean?" Gibbs questioned in a curious, yet frightened tone.

"It means ye need to stop worrying lad… cause we're here." The crew prepared to anchor and steadied the ship at once. Jack took out his spyglass and searched the horizon. The fog was thick, but he could just make out the shape of large boulders and land in the distance.

The crew dismounted the ship and rowed towards the mysterious island. It was very hard to maneuver the rough waters, but the crew made it successfully. When they reached the beach, the fog cleared instantly and Jack pulled out the map.

"Just like old times, eh, Arabella?" Jack said sarcastically. She just nodded and walked away.

Jack approached the thick tropical forest that was marked on Will's map. The trees were so thick, there was no entrance accept a small pathway hidden by the brush. The crew followed the narrow pathway for a couple miles before anything actually started to make sense.

"Are you daft Jack? This path has been taking us around in circles for miles!" Gibbs finally had the courage to speak out against Jack. The rest of the crew grumbled with Gibbs too.

"Anyone who wishes to return to the boat may do so," Jack replied, "But remember, I'm the only one with the map. Whoever falls behind is left behind, and there's no telling what kind of creepy beasties surround this island. Savvy?" The crew just moaned, knowing that they had no other choice but to follow Jack, however crazy it may seem.

The path finally lead out to a clearing in the middle of the forest. In fact, the map wasn't leading the crew in circles like they thought. As the crew was walking out into the clearing in a line, Jack stopped abruptly, causing all the crew behind him to crash into each other. "Oops, sorry mates." Jack apologized, "Looks like we have some time to take a small break."

Everyone sat down and rested for a few minutes, awaiting Jack's orders to carry on. They had traveled very far in such a short period of time, and the sun was nearly down.

_- - - - -_

Meanwhile, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann wandered around the island all day. Their map was either hard to follow, or the paths were hard to find. The two of them were lucky to have been given another map by Bootstrap, because without it, they would surely be lost.

Will and Elizabeth followed the map on nearly the opposite side of the island as Jack Sparrow and his crew. They walked through similar paths and trails, as the sun went down they finally decided to take a short break.

"Will, I was just thinking about something. Do you think we'll actually get to the ship before Jack does? What will happen if he gets there first?" Elizabeth asked.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure there is much more to it than just finding the place where the ship is hidden."

"You mean like secret tunnels and traps and stuff like that?"

"That's exactly what I mean, Elizabeth." Will said. "And I also think Jack knows exactly what to expect."

The pair of them started out on their journey again only a few minutes later. It was now completely dark, with only a torch and the moonlight to guide their way. They decided it was best to continue moving, and rest only when they knew the ship was safe in Will's hands.

_- - - - -_

Jack and the crew were getting ready to embark on the rest of their journey. Just then, the trees behind them rustled and the whole crew jumped, scared to death. Jack turned quickly, his pistol in hand. The wind started to pick up, and a low grumble could be heard from the woods.

"Mnmnmnmnmnnnnnn."

Jack's crew took a big step backwards, and Jack took a small step forward. Cautiously, Jack walked towards the opening in the woods. The wind blew even harder, and two large shadows approached the edge of the forest.

Will and Elizabeth stepped out from the woods, and the whole crew pointed a pistol at them. "Well… look who's come to join us." Jack said with a large grin on his face. The crew lowered their weapons. "We thought you two were ghosts."

"Jack! Where did _you _disappear to after our last meeting? And why'd you steal my map?" Will, surprised and angry to see Jack, shouted rather loudly.

"I'm sorry lad, but that's classified information." Jack then turned to his crew, "Gibbs, bring me some rope." The pirate ran up to Jack with his rope in hand.

"I'm sorry Elizabeth, but I have no choice but to tie the pair of you up."

Jack made an attempt to go behind Elizabeth and blind her hands, but she withdrew. "You wouldn't dare!" She yelled. The crew took out their pistols again and Will and Elizabeth had no choice, but to be tied up by Jack.

"You know, in any ordinary situation I would never tie up my friends but-"

"So what _is_ an ordinary situation Jack?" Will interrupted.

"One with beasties? A special, normal situation." Jack said while grinning.

Will and Elizabeth were surprised that they actually caught up to Jack in the first place. They were also surprised when Jack decided to bind them. But this was a race to find the "treasure", and the last man standing would be the winner.

**A/N: I am sooooooooooo sorry I didn't get this chapter up sooner. It is entirely my fault, so don't blame Crazywriter26! Anyway, here it is. Please Review! (This chapter was written by Sky4888 and edited by Crazywriter26.)**


	12. Bound by Ropes

Disclaimer: We own nothing!

A/N: Crazywriter here: I'm sooooo sorry…I've been so busy with school and so has Sky…here is the next chapter. I hope all of you enjoy it and wait through with us until the end of this story.

**Chapter 12: Bound by Ropes**

Elizabeth had put up quite a fight, kicking and screaming, when Jack had began tying them together. She only began to calm down because of physical exhaustion and the soreness of her throat. By the time she had completely calmed down, Jack was no where in site, and it was beginning to get dark.

"Liz, are you alright?" Will asked tentatively, having never seen his fiancé act out like this; he was not sure how to react.

"I'm fine, but I don't want to talk about this know, once we're home and married, I have many more things to tell you about my past."

"Alright, so how about we try to get out of this huh?"

"What do you suggest?"

"Knife?" he asked as he struggled to produce a knife out of his back pocket.

After a moment of struggling Will finally managed to pull the knife out of his pocket, and he began to cut through the ropes that bound his fiancé. Once Elizabeth was free he began to work on the ropes that were tied around him, he cut through the ropes fast, unafraid of harming himself.

The moment they were both free, he took a step toward her "Liz?" She shook her head in response and started to walk off in the same direction of Jack and his crew.

Will jogged after her, catching her arm, pulling her to him. "Relax, I'm not asking for you to talk now, just if your okay." He whispered into her hair.

She took a deep breath "No, I'm not okay, but what choice do I have? Jack's crew is already ahead of us, we don't have time to do this right now, and we've got to go after them." She went to pull out of his embrace, but he held her tighter. "Screw the ship Liz, I don't care about the ship, I care about you."

"It's nothing, I told you once we got home I would tell you" She then pulled free of his embrace and started to walk in the direction Jack and his crew had gone.

_FLASHBACK_

_A now 10 year old Elizabeth Swann sat, tied up in her cell. This was how it always was for her, when the captain and crew weren't tormenting her; she was tied up in a cold, dank cell. She was their prisoner, and had been for the past two years. She had no sense of passing time, the only thing she knew was that it had been a long time, too long for people to still be looking for her, and she had resigned herself to this life forever. _

_Her eyes flickered open has she heard the door squeak open, and heavy footfalls make their way down the stairs. She no longer felt fear for what was too come next. It had happened so many times in the last two years that to the captain and crew, she seemed unfazed by their actions. They thought they couldn't humiliate her anymore; but their actions haunted her every night. Public humiliation was enough to scare even the bravest of children, and she had had enough. After they left her alone in her cell, she would cry herself to sleep, only to be welcomed by nightmares. _

_It would be another year before she was freed from their evil clutches, and brought back to the loving arms of her father. For awhile, once she was home she refused to speak to anyone, until one day a young Mister Turner found her crying in an ally…_

_END FLASHBACK_

"Liz?" Elizabeth was shaken out of her thoughts by Will grabbing onto her shoulders and calling her name.

"What?" she respond as if nothing was wrong, "I want you to tell me what's wrong, you're totally out of it."

"I can't do that Will, not now, I just can't"

"Why?"

"Because then I'll never be able to forget…"


	13. A Perilous End

Disclaimer: We own nothing!

A/N: I'm really sorry we haven't updated the last chapters sooner. I promise we'll try to pick up the pace and finish this story soon. Please stay with us till the end, and read & review!!!!!

**Chapter 13: A Perilous End**

Jack wandered through the heavy brush with his crew for almost two hours. It was dark, quiet, and quite impossible to find anything but the surrounding trees, or the occasional eerie wind. They seemed to be going in circles, until Jack found what he was looking for; A half hidden cave that slumped down into the earth with nothing but darkness ahead.

"Follow close mates! Ye better not be touching nothing either, or ye be doomed." Jack said in a calm voice.

The captain led his mates down into the cave. The only sound that was heard was the slow drip of water down the limestone of the walls. With torch in hand, Jack examined his surroundings. A pool of water lay in front of them with stones throughout, big enough for a foot to step.

"Follow my steps closely. If you step off track, the booby traps will get us all." Jack carefully chose which stones to step across. He held his foot out, and lowered it slowly onto the rock. Then he shifted his weight to the stone, relieved that nothing out of the ordinary happened. Not a second later, a rickety squeak, like the sound of something turning, approached them. Darts began to fly out of the wall, and forced the crew to duck. A few of the mates fell into the pool, and it sizzled. The bubbles in the water revealed the bones left behind, and the skulls rose to the surface.

"Don't fall in!" Jack yelled half exasperated. "Thee rest of ye better wait back here. Gibbs… come with me"

"Aye captain!"

The pair of them managed to reach what seemed like the never ending waterway. They carefully reached the other shore without stepping in the water, or a booby trapped stone. Jack was very relieved when they hit the solid earth at last, because crossing the pond was so nerve wracking.

As they walked farther away from the water, a gold shimmering light illuminated the entire cave room. A large boulder sat it the middle of the room with the source of the light atop. It was a disk shaped piece of gold, about the size of a person's hand, with a beautiful crystal in the middle off center. Through a small hole in the roof, the moonlight entered and reflected the beam through the crystal.

"That is our prize mate. We'll need that, in order to get to our next destination." Jack said.

"What is it Jack?"

"That medallion acts as a key to opening the cave where Will's ship lay hidden. Inside the crystal, there is a small vial of liquid that can cure anything, and even be close to saving something from dying. However, the person in possession of the medallion must choose. They can either use it as a key to unlocking the most powerful ship in all of the Caribbean, or, they can break open the crystal and use the liquid as a one time healer."

"Argh, sounds powerful. What be the plan cap'n?" Gibbs asked.

"You'll stay here… I'll climb up to the top of the boulder, carefully retrieve the medallion, toss it down to ye, climb down from the boulder, take a swig of rum, run from the booby traps, and narrowly miss getting killed by an unleashed beasty." Jack replied in one breath. "Savvy?"

"Wh… what was that Jack?" He just smiled and turned around to start the steep climb for the mysterious gold object.

_MEANWHILE_

Will and Elizabeth easily got loose from the ropes in less than five minutes. They escaped Jack's crew in an almost too simple manner, wandering if he wanted to make it easy for them to flee. They were somewhere lost in the middle of the island, but were lucky enough to still have Will's map. They followed it close to the same route Jack took with his mates, through the thick, dark brush.

"Will, what is that up ahead?" Elizabeth asked, pointing to the small opening in the ground.

"I have no idea. It looks like this black mark on the map. Maybe we're supposed to go in there." Will replied.

"Are you sure about that? It doesn't exactly look safe, if you know what I mean. We're going to need some kind of light, and weapons before we go in that cave."

Will handed Elizabeth his pistol, and withdrew his sword. He knew Elizabeth had good aim, and it wouldn't be a problem if she needed to use the gun. With sword in one hand, and the torch in the other, Will started towards the eerie cave with Elizabeth close behind.

They entered along the same way Jack did, and approached the underground pond with the rocks. The crew that Jack left behind was nowhere to be seen. It was just Will, the pond, and his fiancé.

"Elizabeth, hold this for a minute." Will handed Elizabeth the map, and she stared blankly down at it.

"I'm not sure where to go next. I think we need to cross the water, but there is no bridge." He examined the cave, including the walls carefully. Meanwhile, Elizabeth saw something noted on the side of the map.

"Will… take a look at this. It says,

_Cross, but be warned; those who touch the water, remain the water._"

"Well, lets go for it then!"

Will went first. He carefully stepped from stone to stone, without placing his foot near the pond water. Elizabeth followed in his foot steps, just a little more clumsily. Will somehow managed to miss all of the booby trapped stones. Elizabeth however, was not as lucky. She accidentally stepped on a stone that Will did not. The slow _click click_ sound of something turning could be heard.

Putting two and two together, Will shouted, "ELIZABETH, don't pick up your foot. It's a trap!" She nodded slightly, a bit nervous, with her balance off.

"Will, I … I can't. I'm going to fall." Elizabeth lifted her foot off the stone to place it on the next, to maintain her balance. As she did that, darts flew from the wall. She ducked, but one hit her right on the side of the neck. Will nearly got one himself, but ducked, and managed to catch the unconscious Elizabeth before she fell into the water. He carried her across the pond to the shore, and tried to revive her.


	14. Jack Sparrow: A Good Man?

A/N: Hey guys...its crazywriter here. Sorry about the lack of updates, you know how I am with updating, I'm lucky to get a chapter out every couple months. But here's the next chapter...

**Chapter 14: Jack Sparrow: A Good Man?**

As Will desperately tried to revive Elizabeth, what remained of Jack's crew began to crowd around him, waiting to see what would happen.

"Move out of the way, you blundering fools!" The sound of their Captains voice caused them all to scatter, allowing him to get a good look at what was going on. Jack stopped in his tracks when he saw who was the center of the crew's attention, a panicked Will sitting with a deathly pale Elizabeth in his lap. He had given up on trying to revive her. Jack rushed over "What happened?!"

"She was hit in the neck with a dart." came the shaky reply from the former blacksmith.

"Just breathe, whelp, she's going to be alright, this can save her." Jack said, holding up the key with the small vile of green liquid set on top.

"Cap'n, are you sure-" Before Gibbs even finished asking the question, Jack had uncorked the vile and was pouring the contents into Elizabeth's open mouth. After a couple of tense moments, Elizabeth's eyes flutter open; they flicked over everyone in the room before, finally landing on Will's.

"Elizabeth..." he whispered trailing off.

"What happened? The last thing I remember is tripping and then...this."

"The stone you stepped on, to keep your balance, triggered a dart to be released from the wall and it hit you in the side of the neck. I managed to catch you before you hit the water, and carry you back here. I tried everything I could to revive you but it wasn't working, and just as I gave up, Jack came back and said this could save you." Will said, as he picked up the key and showed it to her.

"Is that what we've been searching for?" she questioned Jack.

"Aye, the key unlocks the most powerful ship in the Caribbean, or the vile that sits atop it can heal anything and save someone from certain death."

"Or?" everyone, but Gibbs questioned him.

"Aye, only one or the other can be used not both...Look." he said, pointing to the key in Will's hand, it was disintegrating.

Elizabeth looked up at Jack in shock "You…you...gave up the ship...t-to save me?"

"Aye, think of it as an apology of sorts for earlier."

She nodded somewhat dumbly.

At this point the crew began to move about, angered at being dragged out all this way for nothing "So that's it, we get nothing out of this, no gold, no ship-"

"Now I didn't say that. Just because we no longer have the key that unlocks the ship, doesn't mean we still can't go after it."

"Ye have a plan then?" asked Gibbs.

"Aye, I have a plan."


End file.
